English for Civil Engineers

Introduction

English for Civil Engineers is an online course, consisting of 93 units of English, and providing approximately 100 hours of study for students.

Course aims

To give students at Intermediate, CEFR B1/Upper Intermediate B2 level practice in general and business-oriented language required for business contexts at this level, specifically tailored towards the specialisation of civil engineering. The course blends grammatical structures necessary for this level, with vocabulary, reading, listening, writing, speaking and pronunciation.

Gramatika

By the end of the course, students will be able to:

  • Use present and past tenses correctly
  • Use the appropriate conditional forms to talk about situations and consequences
  • Use the present perfect to describe a link between past and present events
  • Use going to and will to talk about future predictions and intentions
  • Use the passive form correctly
  • Distinguish and be able to correctly describe countable and uncountable nouns

Vārdnīca

  • By the end of the course students will have learnt approximately 120 expressions used in civil engineering

Skills

  • By the end of the course students will have had exposure to and practice in reading and hearing formal and informal English from a variety of accents and civil engineering contexts

Unit summary

Module 1

  • Introduction to Civil Engineering
  • Gramatika: Present tenses
  • Vārdnīca: Key civil engineering terms
  • Lasīšana: A brief history of civil engineering
  • Klausīšanās: Roles and responsibilities of civil engineers
  • Rakstīšana: My civil engineering journey
  • Runājot: My motivations for working in civil engineering
  • Pronunciation: Anxious and Chess + connected speech

Module 2

  • Engineering Disciplines and Infrastructure
  • Gramatika: Past tenses
  • Vārdnīca: Civil engineering disciplines and infrastructure
  • Lasīšana: Understanding various disciplines and their contributions to infrastructure
  • Klausīšanās: Importance of different infrastructure components
  • Rakstīšana: Creating summaries of infrastructure projects
  • Runājot: Describing and comparing various engineering disciplines
  • Pronunciation: Beats and Beach + connected speech

Module 3

  • Materials and Construction Techniques
  • Gramatika: Going to and Will
  • Vārdnīca: Common civil engineering materials and construction methods
  • Lasīšana: The properties and applications of various construction materials
  • Klausīšanās: Construction techniques and material selection
  • Rakstīšana: Material specifications and construction processes
  • Runājot: Explaining the advantages and disadvantages of various materials
  • Pronunciation: Bet and But + connected speech

Module 4

  • Surveying and Site Analysis
  • Gramatika: Present perfect
  • Vārdnīca: Surveying tools, techniques, and site analysis
  • Lasīšana: The importance of accurate surveying and site analysis in civil engineering
  • Klausīšanās: Site assessments
  • Rakstīšana: Preparing comprehensive site analysis reports
  • Runājot: Presenting site analysis results and recommendations
  • Pronunciation: Bud and Bird + connected speech

Module 5

  • Engineering Design and Planning
  • Gramatika: Countable and uncountable nouns
  • Vārdnīca: Engineering design concepts and planning
  • Lasīšana: The role of design and planning in civil engineering projects
  • Klausīšanās: Design and planning tasks
  • Rakstīšana: Creating design documents and project plans
  • Runājot: Communicating design ideas and discussing project issues
  • Pronunciation: Cart and Cut + connected speech

Module 6

  • Project Management and Teamwork
  • Gramatika: First conditional
  • Vārdnīca: Project management principles and teamwork concepts
  • Lasīšana: Effective project management in civil engineering
  • Klausīšanās: Project management strategies and challenges
  • Rakstīšana: Developing project management skills
  • Runājot: Sharing personal experiences for project management
  • Pronunciation: Day and Ray + connected speech

Module 7

  • Health, Safety, and Environmental Considerations
  • Gramatika: Passive
  • Vārdnīca: Health, safety, and environmental terms and concepts
  • Lasīšana: The importance of health and safety
  • Klausīšanās: Risk mitigation and environmental protection measures
  • Rakstīšana: Documenting environmental impact assessments
  • Runājot: A health and safety talk
  • Pronunciation: Guess and Yes + connected speech

Module 8

  • Continuing Professional Development and Career Growth:
  • Gramatika: Second conditional
  • Vārdnīca: Career-related terms and concepts
  • Lasīšana: Advancement opportunities and skills development
  • Klausīšanās: Career paths and future goals
  • Rakstīšana: A professional development plan for career advancement
  • Runājot: Setting personal goals and identifying areas for growth
  • Pronunciation: Hope and Hop + connected speech

Follow-up

Students completing the English for Civil Engineers course should feel confident in tackling any upper intermediate course, including our Upper Intermediate Business Power course.